President Trump said Sunday he'll release the results of his "perfect" October MRI scan.
Why it matters: The 79-year-old president has faced scrutiny over his health this year, and leading Democratic figures have called for him to release the MRI test results.
- Leading the charge is Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), with whom Trump has traded barbs in recent months.
Context: Walz claimed on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday that the president is "fading physically" and questioned his "mental capacity" while responding to questions about Trump singling him out in a Friday night post on immigration and Minnesota's Somali community.
- "Here we got a guy on Thanksgiving where we spent time with our families, we ate, we played Yahtzee, we cheered for football or whatever," said Walz, who was presidential nominee Kamala Harris' running mate in Democrats' 2024 election loss to Trump.
- "This guy is apparently in a room ranting about everything else. This is not normal behavior. It's not healthy."
What he's saying: When asked to address Walz's calls on NBC and X to release his MRI results, Trump replied to reporters Sunday: "You mean the incompetent Governor Walz? If they want to release it, it's OK with me to release it, it's perfect."
- When a reporter asked Trump what part of the body the MRI was looking at, Trump said: "I have no idea. It was just an MRI. ... It wasn't the brain because I took a cognitive test and I aced it, I got a perfect mark — which you would be incapable of doing."
State of play: Trump has faced speculation about his health this year after images of bruises on his hands emerged and a July diagnosis of chronic venous insufficiency (CVI), a common condition whereby veins in the legs are damaged.
- However, an October medical report declared him to be in "exceptional health."
- That report on his second trip to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center since retaking office didn't mention the MRI scan, but it did say he'd received "advanced imaging."
- White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said earlier this month that it was "part of his routine physical examination."
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